The clarion. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1883-1888, 1887-06-22

magnificent theories, ana more nArd
work.
Still further: The great remedial in
fuence is the gospel Of Christ. Take that
down through the lanes of suffering. Take
that down amid the novels of sin. Take
that up amid the mansions and palaces of
your city. That is the salt that can cure
all the poisoned fountains of public in
| iquity. Do you know that in this cluster
Of three cities, New York, Jersey City and
Brooklyn, there are a great multitude OF
| homeless children You see ] speak more
| in regard TO the youth and the children of
| the country, because old villains are
seldom reformed, and, therefore, l talk
more about the little ones. They sleep
under the stoOps in the burned out safe,
| in the wagons in the streets, on the barges,
wherever they can get board TO cover
| them And in the summer they sleep all
| night long in the parks. Their destitution
| is well set forth by an incident A city
| missionary asked one of them: Where Is
| your homer Said he: 81 don't have no
| home, sir - sfWell, where are your father
| and mothers'' ''They are dead, sir
| "Did you ever hear of Jesus Christ?' mo,
| / don't think ever heard of him" Ibid
you ever hear of Godf" eyes, I've heard
| Of God. Some Of the poor people think it
| kind Of lucky at night to say something
1 over aDUut Lllht DtlOIE Luty ~ W steep
Yes, sir, I've heard of him" Think Of a
| conversation like that in Christian city.
How many are waiting for you to come
| out in the spirit of the Lord Jesus Christ
and rescue them from the wretchedness
| here. Oh, that the church Of God had
| arms long enough and hearts warm
enough to take them upi How many OF
| them there are! AS / was thinking OF
| the subject this morning, it seemed to me
| as though there was a great brink, and
| that these little ones with cut and torn
feet were coming on toward it. And here
| is a group of orphans. Oh, fathers and
mothers, what do you think of these
| fatherless and motherless little ones7 No
| hand at home to take care of their APP
| parel, no heart to pity them. Said one
| little one, when the mother died: WHO
| will take care Of my clothes nOw?" The
| little ones are thrown out in this great,
cold world. They are shivering on the
| brink like lambs on the verge of preci-
| pice. Does not your blood run cold as
they go over it,
| And here is another group that come on
| toward the precipice. They are the chill
dren of besotted parents. They are worse
| off than orphans. Look at that pale
| cheek; woe bleaehed it. Look at that
| cash across the forehead; the father
/ SBIuCk IL. near tildJ IltdIb DltICillB cry,
drunken mothers blasphemy compelled
| it. And we come out and say: so ye suf
fering, peeled and blistered ones, we come
| to help you" "Too latep' cry thousands
| of voices; "the path we travel is steep
down, and we can't stop. Too later And
| we catch our breath and make a terrific
outcry. ''Too latep' is echoed from the
| garnet to the cellar, from the gin shop and
| from the brothel. "Too later' 1t is too
late, and they go over.
Here is another group, an army of
neglected children. They come on toward
the brink, and every time they step 10000
hearts break. The ground is red with the
blood of their feet. The air is heavy with
their groans. Their ranks are being filed
up from all the houses of iniquity and
shame. Skeleton Despair pushes them on
toward the brink The death knell has
| already begun to toll, and the angels of
| God hover like birds over the plunge of a
cataract. While these children are on the
brink they halt, and throw out their hands
and cry: "Help! helpr Oh, church of
God, will you help? Men and women
bought by the blood of the Son of God,
| will you help? while Christ cries from the
heavens: Save them from going down;
am the ransom
stopped on the street and just looked
Have you ever examined the faces of the
neglected children of the poor? Other
children have gladness in their faces.
When n group of them rush across the
road, it seems as though a spring gust
had unlOosened an orchard of apple bios
SONS. But these children of the poor.
There is but little ring in their laughter,
| and it stops quick as though some bitter
memory tripped 1t. They have an old
walk. They do not skip or run on the
| lumber just for the pleasure of leaping
down. They never bathed in the noun
tain stream. They never waded in the
brook for pebbles. They never chased
the butterfly across the lawn, putting
their hat right down where it was just
before. Childhood has been dashed
out of them. Want waved its wizard
wand above the manager of their
| birth, and withered leaves are
| lying where God intended budding giant
of battle Once in a while one of these
children gets out. Here is one, for in
stance. At 10 years of age he is sent out
by his parents, who say to him: "Here is
a basket; now go off and beg and steal {"
The boy says: 81 can't steal.' They kick
him into corner That night he puts
his swollen head into the straw, but q
voice comes from heaven, saying: "Cour-
| dStf pOOI DOl, covering up Ills
head from the bestiality, and stopping his
ears from the cursing, he gets on up
better and better. He washes his face
clean at the public hydrant. With
a few pennies got at running errands
he gets a better coat Rough men,
knowing that he comes from a low
street, say: 'Back with you, you little
villain, to the place where you came
from" But that night the boy says:
GOD help me, can't go back" and
quicker than ever mother flew at the cry
of a child's pain, the Lord responds from
the heavens: Courage, poor boy, cour-
| ager His bright face gets him posi-
| ton. After a while he is second clerk.
Years pass on, and he is first clerk.
Years pass on. The glory of young man
hood is on him. He comes into the firm.
He goes on from one business success to
| another. He has achieved great fortune
| He is the friend of the church of God, the
friend of all good institutions, and one
day he stands talking to the board of
trade or to the chamber of commerce.
People say: "Do you know who that is2
| Why, that is a merchant prince, and he
| was born on Elm street" But God SAYS
| in regard TO him something better than
that; These are they which came out of
great tribulation, and had their robes
washed and made white in the blood of
| the Lamb Oh, for some one to write
the history of boy heroes and girl heroines
| who have triumphed over want and star
walton, and filth and rags! Yea, the
record has already been made, made. by
| the hand of God; and when these shall
come at last with songs and rejoicing, it
will take very broad banner to hold the
names of all the battlefields on which they
| got the victory.
Some years ago a roughly clad, ragged
boy came into my brothers. office In New
| York and said: ''Mr. Talmage, lend me
| So" My brother said: ''Who are YOUR
| The boy replied: 81 am nobody. Lend
me So" what do you want to do with
| $5sn "Well," the boy replied, ''my
| mother is sick and poor and want to go
| into the newspaper business, and l shall
| get home for her and 1 will pay you
back" My brother gave him the So, of
course never expecting to see it again; but
he said: "'When will you pay itr' The
boy said: II will pay it in six months.
SIR Time went by, and one day a lad
came into my brothers Office and said:
There's your S." ssWhat do Won
means What S5s'' inquired my brother.
Don't you remember that boy came in
here six months ago and wanted to Dor
row 50 to go into the newspaper bust
nessS' ''Oh, yes, l remember; are You
the ladSn Yes he replied, II have got
along nicely. have got nice home for
my mother tshe is sick yeti and am as
well clothed as you are, and there's your
| So Oh, was he not worth saving. WHY.
that lad is worth fifty such boys as have
sometimes seen moving in elegant circles.
never put to any use for God or man.
Worth savingi / go farther that that
and tell You they are not only worth saw
ing but they are being saved One of
these lads picked up from our streets and
sent west by benevolent society wrote